Bozeman -- A weekend field course on Yellowstone's super volcanoes, dinosaur paleontology at Montana's famed Egg Mountain and a study of western women writers are among the weekend learning adventures offered by Montana State University's College of Letters and Science and the Burns Office of Continuing Education.

In its third season, the "Landscapes of the Mind" series features five weekend workshops taught by faculty members from the College of Letters and Science. The workshops are open to everyone and can be taken either for credit or no credit.

Geology professor Todd Feeley, who has studied volcanoes throughout the world, hosts a two-day excursion to Yellowstone National Park exploring the history of volcanic activity in the region and the possibility of another catastrophic eruption. The class begins with an on-campus orientation on Friday, Aug. 18, and continues in the field on Aug.19-20.

"Dinosaur Paleontology at Egg Mountain," a popular course that sold out last summer, returns for its third season. The course runs from June 16-18 and is taught by paleontologist Frankie Jackson.

New workshops include: "Western Women Writers and a Sense of Space," taught by English professor Susan Kollin from June 2-4; "Shakespeare and the Miraculous," taught from June 23-25 by English professor Sharon Beehler, is an immersion into four popular Shakespeare plays, including a performance of "The Winter's Tale" by Shakespeare in the Parks; and a weekend of basic "Backcountry Survival Skills," including tracking skills, emergency first-aid, edible and medicinal plant identification, and more, taught July 14-16 by biology professor Sandra Harting.

"These workshops allow anyone to experience the quality of research and instruction offered by the faculty of Letters and Science," said Sara Jayne Steen, dean of the MSU College of Letters and Science. "You get to spend time with world-class professors in a very small group setting."

Fees are $195-$310 per person, depending on the length and travel costs of the course. "Dinosaur Paleontology" and "Super Volcanoes of Yellowstone," both popular courses in past summers, include hotel accommodations in their respective locations as well as transportation from Bozeman.